Can Zakāt Be Given to Ahl al-Bayt (Family of the Messenger ﷺ) if They Are Relatives?
Reference: Ahkam wa Masail, Zakāt Issues, Vol. 1, Page 275
❖ Question:
Is it permissible to give zakāt to Sayyid (Ahl al-Bayt of the Messenger ﷺ) if they are close relatives?
❖ Answer:
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd!
◈ The Entitled Recipients of Zakāt
Allah ﷻ has clearly mentioned in the Qur’an the eight categories of people who are entitled to receive zakāt:
﴿إِنَّمَا ٱلصَّدَقَٰتُ لِلۡفُقَرَآءِ وَٱلۡمَسَٰكِينِ وَٱلۡعَٰمِلِينَ عَلَيۡهَا وَٱلۡمُؤَلَّفَةِ قُلُوبُهُمۡ وَفِي ٱلرِّقَابِ وَٱلۡغَٰرِمِينَ وَفِي سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ وَٱبۡنِ ٱلسَّبِيلِۖ فَرِيضَةٗ مِّنَ ٱللَّهِۗ وَٱللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٞ﴾
(at-Tawbah: 60)
Meaning:
“Charity (zakāt) is only for the poor, the needy, those employed to collect it, those whose hearts are to be reconciled, for freeing captives, for those in debt, in the cause of Allah, and for the stranded traveler. This is an obligation from Allah. And Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.”
◈ Zakāt and Ṣadaqah Are Prohibited for Ahl al-Bayt
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ clearly said that zakāt and ṣadaqah are not permissible for the family of Muhammad ﷺ.
«وَإِنَّهَا لَا تَحِلُّ لِمُحَمَّدٍ ﷺ وَلَا لِآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ ﷺ»
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Kitāb az-Zakāh, Bāb Taḥrīm az-Zakāh ʿalā Rasūlillāh wa ʿalā Ālihi)
Meaning:
“Indeed, ṣadaqah (zakāt) is not permissible for Muhammad ﷺ and the family of Muhammad ﷺ.”
◈ Clarification Regarding Close Relatives
❀ It is not permissible to give zakāt or ṣadaqah to Sayyid (Ahl al-Bayt), even if they are close relatives.
❀ However, close relatives who are not from Ahl al-Bayt, if they fall into one of the eight categories mentioned in the Qur’an, may be given zakāt and ṣadaqah.
❀ The condition is that such a person must not be from among the giver’s wife or dependent minor children.
❀ For the Ahl al-Bayt, financial assistance should be provided through other lawful means, not zakāt or ṣadaqah.
Hādhā mā ʿindī, wallāhu aʿlam biṣ-ṣawāb.
